On Saturday, July 2, 2016 at about 7:15 PM, the Contra Costa County Office of the Sheriff was notified by John Muir Medical Center in Walnut Creek that one of their patients, who was severely injured, was the victim of a battery that occurred in Rodeo earlier in that day, as well as the previous day.

Detectives from the Investigation Division made contact with the suspect, who was interviewed. 56-year-old Michael Endicott of Hercules was later booked into the Martinez Detention Facility on felony battery charges and a probation violation.

The victim, identified as 69-year-old Ronald Kemp of Rodeo, died on Sunday at the hospital. Endicott’s charges now include homicide. He is being held without bail.

Anyone with any information on this incident is asked to call the Office of the Sheriff Investigation Division at (925) 313-2600. For any tips, please email: tips@so.cccounty.us or call 866-846-3592 to leave an anonymous voice message.

According to an ABC News report on Sunday, June 19, 2016 and an L.A. Times article posted today, Noor Zahi Salman, the widow of Orlando terrorist Omar Saddiqui Mateen, was born in San Pablo, grew up in Rodeo, graduated from high school in Crocket and married Mateen in Hercules in Western Contra Costa County, California.

The ABC News report states:

The wife of the Orlando nightclub shooter had learning difficulties when she was in middle school and was enrolled in special education classes, according to her now retired teacher in California.

Susan was Noor Zahi Salman’s teacher at her middle school in Crockett, California. ABC News is not using Susan’s full name or showing her face at her request.

“Noor had difficulty with retention. She had difficulty with conceptualizing, understanding — all challenges to her,” Susan said. “She tried hard. She was very sweet.”

Her family confirmed that Susan was Salman’s special education teacher and that she was enrolled in special education classes.

Susan said Salman was considered a “special day class student” – meaning she had to take all her classes with special education teachers.

The L.A. Times article provided more information about Salman’s background and local ties.

The child of Palestinian immigrants, Salman was born in San Pablo, in the Bay Area, and grew up in Northern California in a hilly neighborhood of tract homes in Rodeo, about 25 miles northeast of San Francisco. She graduated from John Swett High School in 2004.

They were married in Hercules, in Contra Costa County, Calif., on Sept. 29, 2011.

Although Salman accompanied Mateen on at least one trip to the Pulse nightclub before the attack for what is being considered reconnaissance, she has not been charged with any crimes, yet, nor is she currently listed as a suspect.

“With respect to the wife, I can tell you that that is only one of many interviews we have done and will continue to do,” said Ronald Harper, FBI assistant special agent in charge in Orlando, said during a news conference on Wednesday, June 15.

“I am not going to speculate today if any charges have or will be brought in this case,” added Lee Bentley, United States Attorney for the Middle District of Florida.

In spite of her special education classes in middle school, Salman graduated from both high school and college, according to other news reports.

On Thursday, Contra Costa County District Attorney Mark A. Peterson and the West Contra Costa County Police Chiefs Association met to discuss strategies to prevent, investigate, and prosecute freeway shootings in the West County area, and also to review the current efforts to address the shootings.

The West Contra Costa County Police Chiefs and their respective City Managers and City Council members believe that approaching this issue in a collaborative manner is essential. Prior to yesterday’s meeting, West County Chiefs met regarding the freeway shootings; all six chiefs agreed that with collaboration comes a better understanding of diverse perspectives and that the coordinated efforts of many can accomplish more than the efforts of one or a few separately.

Attending the meeting were chiefs from the El Cerrito, Richmond, San Pablo, Pinole, Hercules, and Kensington police departments, as well as members of the county’s Probation Department, and the Offices of the Sheriff and District Attorney.

Since November 2nd, 2015, there have been 13 shootings on Interstate 80, and one on Interstate 580, for a total of 14 shootings in the western portion of Contra Costa County. Of the 14 shootings, two resulted in the deaths of the occupants of the vehicles. On several other occasions, no one was injured as the shots struck only the vehicles, or missed the intended vehicle occupants and their cars entirely.

To date, the great majority of these freeway shootings are gang related. Many of the victimsand witnesses in these cases have been uncooperative with investigators. The lack of cooperation coupled with the random nature of the shootings makes solving such crimes extremely problematic. Additionally, since the crimes occur at very high speeds, there are very few, if any, percipient witnesses.

Chief Paul Fontana, commander of the California Highway Patrol’s (CHP) Golden Gate Division, has convened several recent meetings of law enforcement executives from throughout Contra Costa and Alameda counties regarding the shootings. In the county, an ad-hoc task force of teams of investigators from the CHP and the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Contra Costa Safe Streets Task Force respond to all freeway shootings in the county.

In addition, Deputy District Attorney Barry Grove who has over a decade of experience prosecuting murder cases has been assigned to assist on all freeway shooting investigations; he routinely responds to the shooting sites to provide legal advice and investigative guidance.

In addition to the investigative efforts, law enforcement is working with representatives of the Governor’s Office, the California Department of Transportation, and local mayors and other elected officials to explore the use of other technologies to assist in the effort to stop the shootings. These include the installation of high resolution cameras, gunshot detection technology, and other technologies, on the freeways and the entry/exit ramps.

Preventing freeway shootings, and prosecuting those responsible for them, is one of the top priorities for government at all levels in the county.Nearly a quarter million people travel daily on Interstate 80 in Contra Costa County, and we will do everything possible to ensure their safety.

We are seeking the public’s help on this critical public safety matter. Anyone with information concerning the shootings is encouraged to contactthe California Highway Patrol Investigative Services Unit at (510) 622-4609 or 1-800-TELL-CHP, or your local law enforcement agency.

A machine gun was among the many guns seized from a home in Crockett by the Contra Costa Sheriffs CASE team in a May raid.

Seized .30 caliber machine gun.

Following an investigation, the CASE (Contra Costa County Anti-Violence Support Effort) team last month served a search warrant on a home in Crockett.

Inside the residence, CASE team members located numerous weapons, including an assault rifle and a .30 caliber machine gun. The investigation is ongoing.

The CASE Team is a joint effort by the Office of the Sheriff, California Department of Justice, California Highway Patrol, Pittsburg Police Department and Walnut Creek Police Department. CASE was created in November 2011 as a collaborative effort to reduce violent crimes in Contra Costa, especially those related to illegal firearms.

While the County Elections Office continues to count ballots and provide updates, it’s clear that both Supervisor Federal Glover and Martinez Councilwoman Anamarie Avila Farias have taken the top two spots in the race for District 5 Supervisor, and will be in the November run-off.

County Elections Office staff stated they had 56,000 ballots in the county left to count as of Wednesday, not including 19,000 provisional ballots nor those ballots that were postmarked by Tuesday and received by today.

As of the Thursday afternoon vote count update, Glover holds the top spot with 10,443 votes which is 35.26% of the votes and Avila Farias is in second with 9,197 votes which is 31.05%. Trailing in a distant third is former Martinez Mayor Mike Menesini with 4,339 votes or 14.65%, Hercules Mayor Dan Romero with 3,930 votes or 13.27% and then Conrad Dandridge with 1,604 votes or 5.42%.

Avila Farias received a large boost of support from both the firefighters and the deputy sheriffs in the county, with over $68,000 spent on her behalf.

The Elections Office has 28 days to certify the election and is expected to provide another update, later today and more next week, as the remaining ballots are counted.

Firefighters, Deputy Sheriffs contribute $80,000 to help her beat Glover

By Allen Payton

The latest campaign finance reports were due on Thursday, May 26th and they show a $35,000 contribution from the International Association of Fire Fighters to the special committee formed to support Martinez Vice Mayor AnaMarie Avila Farias in her campaign for District 5 County Supervisor. She’s running to unseat four-term incumbent Federal Glover. The report covers the time period of May 4-21, 2016.

The firefighters’ contribution brings their total amount of support for Avila Farias’ campaign to $40,000. It is in addition to the $5,000 they previously contributed directly to her campaign committee. It also matches the $35,000 contribution to the Contra Costa County Families for Responsible Leadership Supporting AnaMarie Avila Farias for Supervisor 2016 committee from the Contra Costa DSA (Deputy Sheriff’s Association) Independent Expenditure PAC and their $5,000 contribution directly to her campaign.

As previously reported, the funds paid for $15,000 on research, as well as $12,908.60 for design, printing and postage for a mailer. An additional $25,674.44 reported was spent on two more mailers. All the costs for the mailers were paid to a company in Washington, D.C.

The Contra Costa County Sheriff’s Office identified the victim of the shooting death in North Richmond, last Friday, as 19-year-old Adan Gomez of Richmond. The cause of death is multiple gunshot wounds.

On Friday, May 20, 2016 at about 7:46 PM, Deputy Sheriffs were dispatched to area of 5th Street and Grove Avenue in North Richmond for a report of shots-fired.

Upon arrival Deputies located a shooting victim on the sidewalk. Deputies administered first aid until paramedics arrived. Gomez was taken to Kaiser Medical Center in Richmond and then airlifted to John Muir Medical Center in Walnut Creek, where he was later pronounced deceased.

Dispatch later received a call of a second shooting victim at Kaiser in Richmond. Deputies contacted the 23-year-old man, who was treated and released from the hospital.

The investigation into this homicide is ongoing.

Anyone with any information on this incident is asked to call the Office of the Sheriff Investigation Division at (925) 313-2600. For any tips, please email: tips@so.cccounty.us or call 866-846-3592 to leave an anonymous voice message.

The victim in the homicide in North Richmond on Sunday, May 15th has been identified by the Contra Costa County Sheriff as 26-year-old Antoine Robinson of North Richmond. The cause of death is gunshot wound.

On Sunday, May 15, 2016 at about 1:45 AM, Sheriff’s Office dispatch received reports of shots fired in the area of Market Avenue and Fred Jackson Way in North Richmond.

The Sheriff’s Office was later advised that there was a shooting victim at Kaiser Medical Center in Richmond. Robinson was apparently shot at the location where the shooting was reported in North Richmond. He died at the hospital.

Deputies later found a shooting scene at the location. The investigation is ongoing.

Anyone with any information on this incident is asked to call the Office of the Sheriff Investigation Division at (925) 313-2600. For any tips, please email: tips@so.cccounty.us or call 866-846-3592 to leave an anonymous voice message.

The Contra Costa County Sheriff identified the victim in a shooting death in Rodeo as 29-year-old Willie Mulder, Jr. of Richmond. The cause of death is a gunshot wound.

At about 12:09 PM on Thursday, May 12, 2016, Deputy Sheriffs were dispatched to numerous calls of “shots fired” in the area of Mariposa and Napa Avenues in the unincorporated area of Rodeo.

Upon arrival Deputies found the area clear of people, but numerous shell casings in the roadway. Local hospitals were notified to be on the lookout for possible gunshot victims.

The Sheriff’s Office was later notified by Kaiser Medical Center in Richmond that it had just received a gunshot victim, who was later pronounced deceased. The 29-year-old male victim is not being identified at this time.

Homicide Detectives and Crime Lab personnel responded to the scene. The investigation is ongoing.

Anyone with any information on this incident is asked to call the Office of the Sheriff Investigation Division at (925) 313-2600. For any tips, please email: tips@so.cccounty.us or call 866-846-3592 to leave an anonymous voice message.

Campaigns are required to file reports of contributions received by their campaigns of $2,000 or more, within 24 hours of receiving them, between March 9 and June 7, 2016. The rules changed in the county, this year, increasing from $1,000 to $2,000. However, the form provided by the County Elections Office had the old information on it and some candidates weren’t informed of the change. So, some of their reports reflect contributions of less than $2,000.

Some of the contributions that can be seen in the reports, known as 497 forms, below have been reported previously, on the regularly scheduled financial reports – 460 forms – for the period January 1 through April 23, 2016.

Martinez Vice Mayor Anamarie Avila Farias and Supervisor Federal Glover were the only candidates to submit any 497 forms.

However, the specifically formed Contra Costa Families for Responsible Leadership Supporting Anamarie Avila Farias for Supervisor committee submitted a 497 report showing it had received $35,000 from the Contra Costa County DSA (Deputy Sheriffs Association) Independent Expenditure PAC. Of those funds $12,908.60 was spent for the design, printing and postage for a mailer in support of Avila Farias and another $15,000 on research, which could be for polling, as reported on the newly formed committee’s 496 Independent Expenditure Report.

The Deputy Sheriffs also contributed the maximum of $5,000 directly to Avila Farias’ campaign committee which she reported on a 497 report.

So far those are the largest contributions and independent expenditures of anyone or organization reported in the District 5 Supervisor’s race.

When asked if she had any comment on the large amount of money spent on her behalf, Avila Farias replied “I can’t control outside spending for me or against me. So, I don’t pay attention to it.”

“I’m concentrating on my efforts to meet voters by going door-to-door, through phone calls and the mailbox and it’s going very well,” she added.

Her 497 reports also show new contributions, since the last reporting period, of $1,675 from Service Employees International Union Local 1021 Candidate PAC, $1,675 each from DeNova Homes in Concord and Lori Sanson of Walnut Creek, $1,600 each from General Contractor James Busby and Scott Busby Construction, $1,000 from International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers (IFPTE) Local 21 TJ Anthony PAC Fund. Her reports also show previously reported contributions of $5,000 from the United Professional Fire Fighters of Contra Costa County and $1,675 from Antioch Councilman Tony Tiscareno.

Glover’s reports

Glover also submitted 497’s showing new contributions of $5,000 from the California Nurses Association PAC, $4,000 from the Building Industry Association’s BUILD JOBS PAC, $1,675 from the Teamsters’ DRIVE Committee in Washington DC, $1,675 from the Contra Costa Coalition for Business and Jobs, $1,650 from the Pittsburg Police Benefit Association, $1,000 from the Northern California District Council of Laborers PAC, and $1,675 each from a variety of individuals and businesses including, County Clerk Joe Canciamilla’s campaign committee, Dr. Laura Canciamilla’s school board campaign committee, and an accounting firm in Carson City, Nevada that specializes in the solid waste industry.

Glover’s reports also show previously reported large contributions of $5,000 from the IBEW (International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers) Local Union 302 PAC, $2,000 from the Operating Engineers Local 3, $1,675 from U.A. (United Association) Local 342 P.A.C. Fund, $1,500 from the Northern California Carpenters Regional Council, $1,000 from the Laborers International Union of North America Local No. 324, $2,000 from Bisio and Dunivan, a property management company in Martinez, and another $1,000 from Joanne Dunivan-Bisio at the same address as Bisio and Dunivan.

The latest reporting period ended this last Saturday, May 21 and 460 reports are due this Thursday, May 26. Contributions of $100 or more will appear on those forms.